Pennsylvania could receive several more inches of rain over a day or two early next week from the remnants of Hurricane Florence.

So what does a professional have to say about protecting a home from the prolonged wetness and persistent rain in central Pennsylvania during the summer of 2018?

First and foremost -- check your sump pump. That's the advice of Mark Tretter, owner of Turning Point Restoration in Dauphin County.

For those who don't know, a sump is a pit in the floor of a basement, often in a corner. Being the lowest point, water that would otherwise come into the basement collects in the sump. A sump pump sits in the sump to remove the water. If you have one, you'll probably be able to spot it by an electrical cord leading through the sump cover and a discharge pipe leading up and out of the basement.

A good way to check the pump is to pour a bucket or two of water into the pit to see if the pump switches on and does its job. Also, look for the pump float and make sure nothing is obstructing it. Make sure the water is being carried away from the basement and deposited outside at a location that allows it to flow away.

Another important step to keeping a basement dry is to make sure outdoor roof gutters and downspouts are free of clogs. The bottoms of the downspouts should be pointed away from the house so the water flows away. When gutters or downspouts malfunction, it allows all that water collected by the roof to accumulate next to the foundation, creating high probability water will end up in the basement.

"Those are probably the two biggest things a homeowner can do help themselves before the storm comes," Tretter says, referring to checks of the sump pump and gutters and downspouts.

In times like these, when the ground is saturated, ground moisture tends to make its way through basement walls, resulting in excessive dampness and humidity. An ideal solution, according to Tretter, is to run a dehumidifier in the basement, with the dehumidifier emptying into the sump pump pit. This eliminates the need to continually empty the unit's collection pail, which can fill up multiple times per day during wet times. When the pail is full, the room humidity quickly rises. Tretter recommends keeping the humidity level below 55-60 percent. Allowing it to rise above 60 percent creates smells and permits mold and mildew to grow.

Here's some advice from Tretter that most people wouldn't think of until it's too late: Does your insurance cover everything you think it covers, and want it to cover? Does it cover, for example, sewage backing up into the home? If you have an older home that needs restoration, does the policy cover complying with modern building codes, or does it only cover returning it to "pre-loss" condition. "We see that all the time," says Tretter, referring to people finding themselves without the needed coverage.

"Now is the time for homeowners to call their agent and ask the tough questions," Tretter says.

It's inevitable that basements will flood, due to sump failure or electrical outage. If that happens -- don't go down into the basement. The water on the floor creates the risk of electrical shock. Another hazard is when sewage backs up into the basement, which an happen during periods of heavy rain. The backed up sewage -- we're taking residential waste as opposed to stormwater -- can carry dangerous bacteria. "If your basement floods, there are a ton of hazards. Electrical shock, sewage backflow ... "That's something you want to leave to a professional," Tretter says.